8/22/2008

When Apple Inc rolled out its iPhone in the United States, some fans paid big money to be among the first to get their hands on the device. In Poland, people are getting paid to line up.

"We have these fake queues at front of 20 stores around the country to drum up interest in the iPhone," a spokesman said.

As part of a marketing campaign ahead of the iPhone's Friday launch in Poland, the country's largest mobile operator Orange (FTE.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is paying dozens of actors to stand in queues.

Apple sold about one million of the new iPhone models in the United States around the July launch weekend, but buyers in Poland may be reluctant to pay hefty monthly charges.

There were no queues at T-Mobile's (DTEGn.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Era stores, which will also due to launch the iPhone on Friday.Source:By Chris Boroski reuters.com

8/20/2008

WARSAW, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Poland may need interest rate cuts in the first quarter of 2009 should the economy slow to about 4 percent and inflation ease, Monetary Policy Council (MPC) Stanislaw Owsiak was quoted as saying on Wednesday."Should the pace of growth fall (to 4 percent) and inflation ease as outlined in the inflation projection then rate cuts would be possible," Owsiak told daily Gazeta Prawna."But this is a scenario that could materialise in the first quarter of 2009 at the earliest," he added.Owsiak also said the Polish economy would probably slow but it should not be a "deep" slowdown."It (the slowdown) won't be deep but if the pace of growth falls to 4 percent then it will be a greater slowdown than most people expect," Owsiak said.The central bank's June inflation projection showed Poland's inflation is set to stay above 3.5 percent till the end of 2009 and return below the central bank's upper fluctuation limit of 3.5 percent in 2010.Source: By Kuba Jaworowski,Jacqueline Wong, guardian.co.uk